


The Sixth Blight- Chapter One- Make A Man Out Of You

by BelleWrites (sunleyemrys)



Series: The Sixth Blight RP [17]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: AU, OC, Role-Playing Game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-07-02 16:21:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15800202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunleyemrys/pseuds/BelleWrites
Summary: Big ass project to turn the collaborative role play writing I've been doing with a group of friends into a cohesive story. Some things will be edited from the original posts.. but this is largely just cleaning it up and putting everything in order. Each major plot point will be its own post with chapters. Hopefully the story will make sense.Other parts in the series happen at the same time as some of the chapters, so if something seems to missing, its likely cause there is a piece of the story not posted yet. Especially things concerning the character Maeve. Just please be patient with me.





	1. Chapter 1

This was unexpected. Gwyn thought to himself as he made his way over to the training grounds. The area was large and looked like it got quite a bit of use, however today. No one was here. Good.

He could get in training for himself then if Andie chose to show up, he could train her…….he wasn't sure how but he would cross that bridge when he came to it. He rested his sword against the stone wall and took off his armor. He could train with the added weight for later but he needed to get his body back up to peak first. The shirt he was wearing was disgusting, covered in sweat, blood and was that vomit?

Maker take him. He just took the shirt off and threw it in the corner, no one was here; it's not likes he's a woman, there's nothing to hid. He had to admit the wind felt nice, it cooled him down somewhat.

He wiggled his toes between the soft dirt, grabbed his sword and began to swing in a pattern. It was a sort of dance he did, he practiced with one hand then the other; making sure both could manage his sword incase one was injured. It felt good to let his mind go blank and just….be. He didn't need to think or worry he could just swing his sword.

***

Part of Andie wanted to flee Weisshaupt, they knowingly harbored an abomination, even if he was kept under lock and key. It scared her, what else were the Wardens hiding?

She wandered for a bit, trying to decide if working in the library was a good idea, or if she needed to be around people. Rational thought said she should seek out Gwyn, and even irrational thought sided with that.

"Ugh. Fine." She muttered, tying back her hair and setting off to locate the Templar.

No answer at his door, but that didnt surprise her, and he wasnt in the mess hall, so that left the training yard.

***

It was bright out, but it was something Andie just accepted as being part of the barren wastelands. Gwyn was working on sword forms when she found him, his back to her. She watched him carefully, noticing that while he used both hands equally, his right hand was slightly slower than his left.

"You're left handed." She said loud enough for him to hear.

He turned around to look at her, she had tied her hair back so maybe that meant she was ready for hard work. His eyebrows knitted together, she noticed he was slower with his right as well.

“If even an untrained person noticed I really needed to train more” he yelled over to her. He walked up to her, wiping the small ring of sweat from his brow.

“Are you here for training?” he asked curtly, but squinted his eyes at her, she had the look of a mage with something to hide. He was told to be more respectful of the mages here but…..something was wrong. It wasn't his business so he wouldn't ask however his mind raced with possibilities, she could never keep secrets to herself; even when she was a child. Thank the Maker for that but still, all he had to do was wait and maybe she would just tell him what was in that basement that upset her so.

"No, I'm here to knit socks, Gwyn." She rolled her eyes and shed the top layers of her armor, twirling her staff slowly.

"I'm not completely untrained. One of the Enchanters was, or still is I guess, a Warden, and she taught me how to fight."

She assumed a ready stance, "no magic or abilities?"

Her staff swung, lightning flash, clanging against his sword. "This might be the healthiest way for us to have a discussion anyway." She ducked his slash, stepping backwards. "And I have questions. Lots of them."

So she wanted to get right into it. Fine. Have it her way.

He pressed forward, blocking her staff with his sword. If she wasn't careful, it might break but she didn't seem to be in the careful mood.

“Battle isn't the best place for talking Andryanna, you might get hurt!” he used his larger mass to push her back, and to emphasize his point he brought his leg up and gave her a firm kick in the side. Not as hard as he could but she definitely felt it, he swiftly side stepped her. Now he was to her left.

Andie grunted, reflexively trying to curl in over the blow. "This isnt battle. Its training."

She ducked low, her staff cracking against his knee, dancing behind Gwyn. "I want to know, why me? You seem to have it out for me, and me alone."

Andie back peddled, deflecting his strikes, refusing to allow him to get in close range.

His mouth tightened at the blow to his knee, the would bruise later.

“That's where you're wrong Andryanna, everything is a battle, a struggle, a fight. The fact that you don't see that is why you are weak. After everything you've been through you should know that!” he rushed forward trying to close the distance. She made it difficult, but he managed get in and knock her back with the flat of his sword.

“You don't know what the world's like, you don't know what people can do! You should know but you don't!” he yelled, starting to feel his blood boil.

She stumbled back, gritting her teeth. "Of course I dont know about the world!" The blade of her staff hissed through the air, scoring a hit on his arm.

"I was kept in a cage my whole life! Taken from my mother, at birth!" She jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding his sword, rolling through the dirt to spring to her feet.

"She killed herself! And I never knew her! No one ever told me her name!" Andie kicked the dirt at Gwyn's face, snarling in rage.

blinked the dirt from his eyes, now she was starting to take it seriously. It's about time.

“Her name was Agnieszka and she was a tragic woman who didn't see you for the gift you were” he wiped his eyes.

“You're not the only child to lose a parent and that cage kept you safe from yourself and others. You never missed a meal, always had a bed, a roof over your head, an education, a chance for a wonderful life and you call it a cage. People would kill for the life you had! You care not for the poverty at your very doorstep!” he charged at her, bringing his sword down onto her staff, much harder than he had intended.

The staff broke in half, her quick thinking barely saving her face from meeting the same fate. "A cage is a cage, no matter how gilded. Kept me safe from myself!"

Andie swung the two halves into Gwyn's chest, pushing him away. "I was raised to be afraid of myself, to be afraid of people like me! To bow my head to people like you! Never given a choice in what should happen with my own life!"

With a cry of rage, she threw down the broken pieces of the staff, charging at the Templar as a Barrier flared to life around her, the force knocking them both over and her small fists pummeled his chest.

"I spent my entire life feeling unwanted, unloved, and anytime someone showed me kindness, it was ripped away! Do you know what happened to the Chantry mother who raised me when my magic manifested?" Her knuckles were bruised, as was Gwyn's chest, she had turned to using her nails, scratching him.

"I disfigured her! And she ran away from me in fear and shame. Burnt her face with lightning because I had a nightmare and she was trying to soothe me. Not even a day later, I heard news that my mother had flung herself out of the tower rather than have a mage for a child."

He just layer there and took on the young girl's rage...no the young woman. She was an adult now, not a little girl; one that was clearly in a lot of pain. Her tiny fists didn't hurt but once she started clawing it did. He just stayed still and took it, he deserved this, he had failed the mages…...for not seeing the rot that had taken root within the Hossberg Circle. For not seeing the signs, for not…..for not……..

“Your mother was a kind and caring woman, who had been through true horror, a nightmare she couldn't escape. I never met her but if she was anything like my mother she would have wanted you to not suffered the fate she had. Unlike mine she was powerless to act. I don't know that but know this………” he cautiously put his hand on her head, smoothing out her wild hair “It's not your fault Andie”

She stopped, blood and skin under her nails. "What do you mean by true horror? What happened to her?"

Andie stared, suddenly very aware she was straddling Gwyn's bare chest, which was profusely bleeding. "Oh Andraste's Grace! Gwyn! I'm sorry! I..."

She curled in on herself, sobbing uncontrollably.

He kept petting her hair, trying to calm her down. He didn't know what to do for crying, he was at a loss. “How about we take a break. I think I smelled something sweet baking in the kitchen, we could go steal some?” he gave her his very best smile, not sure if it was turning out right. “We could get you something to drink and dry those eyes……” he used a thumb to wipe away some of the wetness. “If you still want to talk about your mother we can, how's that?” please say that was ok…….

Andie sniffled, nodding slightly. "I dont think its stealing though. I think the food is there for us to eat."

She stood, dusting her legs off and winced seeing the damage she had done. "Shit. I'm sorry. We should get you to a Healer, well, the Healer in the infirmary, not the other Healer. Not yet." Andie stopped and stared, "Why in the world are you bare-chested? You're as pale as I am. You'll be pinker than a nug in no time!"

He coughed a little and rolled over to stand up. “It's just little scratches, no need to bother them again………...other healer?” he raised an eyebrow at her and turned his head at her, like a dog who had picked up an interesting scent. His eyes narrowed, his target becoming clear. “What other healer?” he knew it was only a matter of time till she slipped. He closed the gap between the two, she barely made it up to his shoulders. He had a cheeky glint in his eyes “Is it about the basement? What's down there?” he stared unblinking at her. Like a wolf who had found a lost little lamb.

She stared at his unblinking eyes, refusing to break contact. "Someone who might be able to help you. Leave your sword here. No weapons, no abilities."

Andie walked over and grabbed a towel, tossing it in Gwyn's direction. "I mean it too. And you cant breathe a word of this to anyone."

She smirked slightly. "Lets, uh, find you a new tunic first though."


	2. Chapter 2

He watched the small group leave from his position upside down. His handstand pushups were starting to get a little painful but Gwyn kept pushing himself knowing full well that pain was the key to bettering oneself. After another 10 minutes Gwyn knew he had to stop, there was pushing yourself and then injuring yourself needlessly. With a great heave he sprung himself back into the standing position. Shaking the sweat from his hair.

He wished the commander had approved his request to include the mages in templar physical training. If they could master their bodies maybe they could master their minds more easily, although having the mages work off extra energy wouldn't have been a bad idea to; less energy into trouble making and more into training couldn't hurt.

He grabbed his sword and started swinging it, focusing on his right arm……...Andie had noticed it was lacking…...Andie. He was troubled by her words, lyrium wasn't a leash, it was a gift. A gift that made him more powerful and a better templar. Why would she think that? He couldn't give it up, what if they fought a demon? Or a darkspawn mage? What then? They would be helpless against them…….he could die if he stopped taking it. He could go mad, he had seen templars who had quite lyrium, their minds broken, ranting and weeping like a child. He would rather die than suffer that. Suddenly he was reminded of the some of the older whores in the brothel, their blank stares, the screaming, crying……..the madness.

He shook that thought from his mind, they weren't the same thing. It was completely different. He swung his sword even harder now.

He wondered, maybe even hoped, Sares would come find him later. That would be nice, he could feel his cheeks flushing but that was just the exertion…...

***

It did not take him long to find Gwyn, surprisingly. Despite the size of the fortress and it getting late, the man was still in the courtyard, covered in sweat and dirt. He seemed lost in his mind and was not looking in his direction, so Sares stood still for a moment, just studying the former templar, then he continued moving, his steps echoing lightly on the ground.

He heard the sound of light footsteps approaching him from behind. Swiftly he swung his sword behind him and held it aloft, pointing the tip at the source of the noise.

He took a sharp intake of breath, realizing who it was. The mage from the infirmary…...Sares. Had he truly come to see him like he said he would? He lowered his sword cautiously, panting and out of breath. He wasn't normally a good judge of these things but he seemed….upset maybe. Tired?

“Hard day?” he asked, splashing water onto his face.

He looked at the sword for a moment and when it was lowered, ran his right hand through his hair. "You could say that. After the Antivan jumping in my bed this morning I did not think the day could get any weirder, but you have no idea how wrong I was. I talked to your First Warden, which was already a bit of a challenge and after that I was thrown out of a window twice, was insulted multiple times and had to play experimental aide to someone. So yes, it was quite a day, so how about a nice relaxing time off where we try to get new clothes and afterwards maybe have some food in the mess hall together." He noticed that he had trouble keeping an annoyed expression off of his face and swiftly tried to relax at least a little.

“Welcome to the Anderfels” he grabbed a larger handful of water and let it wash down his torso. Then realised he had no shirt, Maker, he hadn't had a shirt all day. Sheepishly he grabbed the off white one he had got earlier and put it on. He tucked it into his high waisted pants and pulled the cords tight at the collar so it wasn't so loose at his shoulders.

After his foolish display earlier he was surprised he still wanted to be around him. All his jumping around like a child, he just wanted to blow off steam but it was a silly thing to do.

“Alright, that sounds like a nice plan. Follow me" he began walking in the direction of the quartermaster. “Sorry about earlier, I had a lot on my mind and just swinging my sword wasn't cutting it. I had energy to burn…..”

For a moment, he stared at Gwyn, disbelief on his face. " "Welcome to the Anderfels?" Did you just sass me? Me? Did that just happen? And did you just sass me without even wanting to do it? By the Maker, you are full of surprises, Ser Gwyn." He quickly followed the man, feeling a lot more relaxed now than earlier. This day might just end not terrible, depending on how the next few hours would go. A bright smile filled his face.

"And please do not apologize, it was a very impressive show. And it obviously helped you, though tomorrow you might feel it in your muscles. But as long as you do not force me to get back to that mage tower for a while, you have absolutely nothing to apologize for." It took them only a short while to reach the quartermasters rooms, as they took the direct route there this time and Sares felt strangely energized, despite all that had happened today. Warwick, the smith he had met earlier, was still there, though this time he was rummaging through a chest filled with what seemed to be pieces of iron. Coughing slightly to get his attention, Sares stepped forward. "It seems I'll have to stay here for a while, at least until the First decides that I am not an impersonator sent to cause him trouble. And since my current clothes are a bit more battered than I would like them to be... well I'll just skip straight to the point I'm trying to make as I'm sure you're busy. I need a new shirt, nothing fancy, and a new coat, preferably in darker colors. My trousers are still in decent enough condition as long as I get to clean them at some point in the near future, so that won't be a problem." He looked over at Gwyn who was standing slightly behind him and noticed that his eyes were staring at his lower back. Sares did his best to not break out into laughter. "That's pretty much all for me, what about you, Gwyn, what do you need?"

He grunted and stepped forward to the counter. Nothing fancy he says, Gwyn smirked. “Add a headscarf to his list, it will protect you from the sun and cover your mouth if you get up close and personal with darkspawn. You don't want their blood infecting you.” he leaned his elbows on the counter and peered in “I need a new gambeson, mine has had it, I don't care what colour. Also if the First hasn't opened an account for this man, just add his items to mine.” he leaned back and Warwick rolled his eyes, standing up from where he had been rummaging in a chest.

He grumbled something about bloody mages taking over the place and went to go get the items they requested. It took only a few minutes before he returned, he brought a few things for Sares to choose from and his gambeson, which was blue in colour. “Seems like it's just a matter of colour, which one do you want?” Gwyn asked. The quartermaster huffed “don't have a lot of things that aren't warden colors” the way he emphasized the word warden indicated to Gwyn the man wasn't happy to be give out things to non wardens.

“You can shove that attitude sir, the wardens called for aid, don't treat the people who come like trash” Gwyn hadn't been a warden for all that long but already he was sick of them. Before he came here he had nothing but respect for them but now up close, they just seemed petty and sad, like spoiled, bitter children. “Which one?” he asked Sares again, ignoring the dirty look the quartermaster gave him.

Sares did his best to keep a somewhat serious expression, though he wasn't sure he succeeded. Gwyn was different from how he had been yesterday in the infirmary, apparently whatever Andie had done to help him had helped. Leaning forward, he looked at the different colors and took out a dark shirt and a blue coat, both made from a sturdy but comfortable cloth. "That'll do for the time being, you have my thanks for helping us." He moved a bit to the side so Gwyn could look at the clothes more freely and, while waiting, inspected the coat, his fingers running along the hem of it.

He reached out and felt the material between his thumb and index finger. It felt like it would be comfortable, hopefully it wouldn't be too thick but it was a difficult balance to maintain between light material and sturdiness. He was surprised he chose the blue one, he thought he would go for the other one with the deep maroon colour, the blue did match his eyes better though…….

He nodded his head to the quartermaster and took his item. “Are there holes in it? He might have given you left overs” with his other hand he inspected the tail of the coat. Pulling it up to see, it appeared in good condition. “Good, let's be off then. Do you have accommodations? The guest quarters are this way” he pointed up into the building. He looked at Sares…..what was so funny? He wondered, quirked an eyebrow, the man seemed tired and frazzled, something the Anderfels wastes didn't accomplish “Have you been treated poorly?” Gwyn asked, not trusting the other wardens.

"Somewhat, though not by wardens. And I was already given quarters for my time being here, though I start to think that was supposed to be a punishment by the First for the sole reason of me being here. Besides that, my stay here so far was adequate. I'm just a bit more tired than expected."

They were outside again now and the sun had began to slowly descend, causing the shadows to grow larger and the heat of the day to slowly disappear.


End file.
